A damper with a vehicle height adjusting function, which includes a damper body and a vehicle height adjusting mechanism for adjusting an axial length of the damper body, is applied, for example, to a suspension device for suspending a rear wheel of a motorcycle.
JP 09-263283 A discloses a damper with a vehicle height adjusting function including a damper body for damping road surface vibration that is input to a wheel, and a vehicle height adjusting mechanism for adjusting an axial length of the damper body.
The damper body is fixed through the intermediation of a wheel-side bracket to a link mechanism provided between a frame and a swing arm for supporting a rear wheel. The vehicle height adjusting mechanism includes: a pair of elliptical holes formed in an inverted U-shaped forked tip of the wheel-side bracket; and a pair of inverted collars fitted into the elliptical holes, respectively.
A through-hole is eccentrically formed in one of the inverted collars, whereas an internal thread is eccentrically formed in another one of the inverted collars. The link mechanism is arranged in the forked tip of the wheel-side bracket. A bolt is inserted through the through-hole of the one of the inverted collars toward the internal thread of the another one of the inverted collars, and thus the damper body is coupled to the rear wheel. Accordingly, a vehicle height can be adjusted by changing a mounting direction of both the inverted collars.
Further, JP 2006-170258 A discloses a damper with a vehicle height adjusting function, which is interposed between a vehicle body and a wheel of an automobile or the like. The damper with a vehicle height adjusting function includes a damper body, a vehicle height adjusting mechanism, and a suspension spring arranged on an outer side of the damper body.
The vehicle height adjusting mechanism includes a plurality of cam grooves formed at different depth levels in a lower end surface of a tubular lower spring bearing that is fixed to an outer periphery of the damper body so as to support a lower end of the suspension spring, and a cam portion that extends from an axle-side bracket for coupling the damper body to a wheel and selectively engages with any one of the cam grooves.
The damper with a vehicle height adjusting function can change a position of the lower spring bearing depending on the cam grooves with which the cam portion engages. In this manner, the axial length of the damper body is adjusted, and thus a vehicle height can be adjusted.